Nintendo throws its hat in the next-generation console ring with the release …

Here Wii go

With the Xbox 360 and the PS3, the primary focus is graphical prowess. What special effects can be added to games; how high can we push the resolution, and just how good we can make these titles look? It can be argued that with most games on these two systems, the primary difference between the next-gen and last-gen is improved graphics. Fight Night Round 3 looks better on the PS3 than on the PS2, for instance, but is it worth $10 more? In many cases these new games feel a lot like old games with a new coat of paint. One might begin to wonder if we are going to see the same basic gaming concepts over and over, simply with better graphics as time goes on?

Nintendo is saying no; they are dropping out of the graphics race. Fact is, the Wii is not very powerful in relation to its two competitors. Where it can fight back is innovation; instead of a normal controller, you interact with the game via a remote control-like device that many simply call the "Wiimote." In-game movements are based on, well, real-life movement—and one or two buttons. This control scheme is designed to be intuitive and to really immerse you in what you're doing.

That's the basic proposition: last-gen graphics with a truly new and innovative control scheme. Are gamers going to be willing to overlook the dated graphics in exchange for waving their hands around instead of tapping buttons?

An attractive design

As it turns out, these questions are familiar. When I looked back at my DS review, I recalled some of the early predictions. "The PSP will kill the DS," many said, because it can do much better graphically, and gamers would happily pay more for it. Likewise, we heard worries that developers would never take advantage of the DS touch screen, leaving it nothing more than a gimmick. In the eyes of many, Nintendo was throwing away their portable gaming "monopoly."

We know how Nintendo's gamble turned out; the DS paid off, Nintendo made an almost obscene amount of money from the system, and it's outselling the competition. The underwhelming graphics didn't seem to bother anyone, and it didn't just appeal to some hardcore gamers. People who were never interested in a GameBoy were intrigued by the touch screen interface and the novel games. It actually brought in new gamers, and that strategy is a large part of Nintendo's plan.

The Wii has the possibility to do the same thing. Few of your Halo and Final Fantasy skills are going to translate to this system. Instead, you're going to have to learn a whole new way to think about games. When it comes to the Wii, we're all newbies, and while that may make some hardcore gamers uncomfortable, it's a revelation for new gamers who finally have something they can pick up and figure out instead of feeling like they couldn't compete without years of practice. The graphics are underwhelming, sure, but that Wiimote is a brand new way to play your games.

Will lightning strike twice for Nintendo? We're going to take a deep look at the Wii hardware and a few of the launch games and see if the Nintendo's low-priced, standard-definition system has any hope of gaining a beachhead in the next-gen console war.